NLLA’s 50th Anniversary Conference will take place over two days, on Monday, April 29th and Tuesday, April 30th, 2019. This year, our theme is 50 years of Celebrating Libraries.

Libraries and library workers in Newfoundland and Labrador have long played a significant role in the history and culture of our province.  From our very beginnings, we have strived to preserve, serve, and educate; we have supported and empowered users by providing rich learning and social spaces, and sometimes just by providing a safe and welcoming place to go.  We work continuously to ensure that our communities have access to information, technology, and resources for learning, and to build and share collections that support and preserve the culture and history of our province.

The value of libraries in Newfoundland & Labrador can be seen in the number of people who pass through our doors, both physical and virtual.  It can be seen in the grass-roots protest that emerged in 2016 when the people of our province learned that their public libraries were under threat.  Libraries are valued in our province, across communities and library sectors, because we retain our core values even as we continue to evolve; learning, transforming, and making new discoveries alongside the communities and people we serve.

For five decades the Newfoundland and Labrador Library Association has witnessed and supported both our ongoing values and our continuing transformations.  Our association brings together library workers from all sectors, building and enriching our own community, while advocating for our libraries and the people who use them.

Now is the time for us to celebrate all that we have accomplished.  In honor of the NLLA’s 50th year, we want to hear from you, our members and supporters.  What does 50 Years of Celebrating Libraries mean to you?  How does your library practice our core values?  What new discoveries have you made? What have you learned from the past?  What do you look forward to, as we move into the next 50 years?

For the NLLA 50th anniversary conference, we are seeking proposals for the following presentation types:

Long presentation or workshop:

45-minute sessions, composed of either a 30-minute presentation and 15-minute question period, or a 45 minute workshop.  May be either practice-based or research-based.

Short presentation or workshop:

30-minute sessions, composed of a 20-minute presentation and 10-minute question period.  May be either practice-based or research-based.

Lightning talk:

7-minute timed presentations, designed to give attendees a brief glimpse into an idea, project, program or activity.

Book teaser:

10-minute presentations consisting of a book talk and reading of a short excerpt.  Teasers can be based on any book chosen by the presenter, including fiction, non-fiction, adult or children’s literature (does not have to be authored by the presenter).  Please state book title in abstract.

The deadline for proposals is Monday, March 18th.  Please submit your proposal using our online form (https://goo.gl/forms/8J9tBaP5Zb1ZrTOn2), and remember to include:

• An indication of the presentation type (long presentation, short presentation, lightning talk or (book teaser).
• The presentation title plus a brief abstract (max. 250 words for a long or short presentation; max. 100 words for a lightning talk or book teaser) describing your topic and the goals of your presentation.
• Contact details (name, library, position, telephone number and email address) for each speaker.
• A brief (max 50 word) biography for each speaker.

For questions or comments, please contact Conference Chairs Donna Inkpen (dinkpen@mun.ca) and Katie Lawton (catherine.lawton@mi.mun.ca) or Janet Goosney (jgoosney@mun.ca) of the NLLA Conference Program Committee.